Measuring What Matters: Reflections on Growth Hub Impact

On 29th January 2026, I attended an event at the House of Commons focused on one thing that is often talked about, but rarely evidenced well: impact.

The event marked the launch of the ARC Growth Hub Cluster Impact Report (April 2020-March 2025).

The report examined the scale and value of business support provided by Growth Hubs, across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Milton Keynes, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Peterborough and Suffolk.

It was a rare privilege and I was delighted to support the teams at both Enterprise Oxfordshire and ALP Synergy.

I've been a business advisor for Enterprise Oxfordshire since May 2021, the team are incredible and their individual impact stats are impressive.

I'm part of the economic development team at ALP Synergy, and I'm delighted that they were the organisation chosen to collate, design and deliver the cluster report.

Significant and Measurable Impact

One of the reports strongest messages is that for every £1 invested, £35 of social and economic value was generated.

The Growth Hub Cluster also:

• Supported 92,719 businesses

• Delivered 178,563 hours of business support

• Helped 3,934 people start a business

• Created 6,970 jobs and safeguarded 6,093 jobs

Looking at higher-intensity clients, the scale becomes even clearer. These businesses:

• Employed over 968,000 people

• Represent nearly 6% of the UK SME workforce

• Generate a combined £25.7 billion in turnover

‘This is not a niche intervention. It is part of the core economic infrastructure supporting a substantial share of the UK economy.’ ALP Synergy

A Marketing Perspective on Impact

From my perspective, this work reinforces something I see repeatedly.

Impact does not speak for itself. Whether you are a public body, a delivery partner, or a commercial organisation, value only counts when it can be evidenced clearly and communicated consistently to the people who need to make decisions.

In this context, marketing is not about promotion. It plays a practical role in:

• Turning complex delivery data into insight that can be understood and trusted

• Ensuring evidence stands up to scrutiny from funders, partners and policymakers

• Helping multiple organisations align around a shared, credible narrative

That is just as true for publicly funded programmes as it is for private businesses trying to demonstrate return on investment.

Final Thought

It was refreshing to see such a strong focus on evidence, evaluation and shared accountability at the House of Commons.

If you are interested in how Growth Hubs are delivering real value, I would strongly encourage you to read both the summary and the full report, which are available here:
https://alpsynergy.co.uk/growth-hub-cluster-impact-report/